Hear Me Out
by perfectsky
Summary: SatoshixRisa Satoshi Hiwatari and Risa Harada are opposites, but they both are in need of a friend...or maybe even something more? Will they be able to find it in each other? Please Read and Review!
1. Portrait of a sleeping girl

_Hear me out_

_Chapter 1_

Spring had changed the surroundings. The warm sun peaked over the horizon shining light on the trees that were in full bloom. Other trees were beginning to display their fresh green leaves. The grass was slightly damp from the morning dew that was already beginning to dissolve. Light fluffy clouds moved across the sky with ease. It was a perfect morning.

She decided to walk to school today, despite her usual laziness. It was early, so she figured it would be a good idea. Opening the front door, a breeze came through. She stepped out.

Closing her eyes, she savored this moment. She absorbed the sounds she heard around her; the rustling of leaves, singing birds, and the pure sound of peace. Over time, she had become more appreciative of these things.

"It's too bad…" she said quietly.

"…that I have to go to school on a day like this."

She couldn't help but smile. An unfamiliar sense of tranquility was upon her. Stretching, she extended her arms to the sky. She felt like she was in the best mood today.

Suddenly, realizing the door was still in fact wide open behind her, she quickly turned. She thought for a minute, making sure she did not forget anything. Glancing around inside, Risa concluded that she was ready to leave. Pulling out her house key, she closed the door carefully and locked it.

She was the last one to leave, since Riku had left early for lacrosse practice that morning.

Embracing the outside air, she stepped down off the porch. She swept a few stray strands of hair from her face, and started on her way.

----------------

The influence of this perfect day had persuaded her to take the long way through the park. She had the time.

She carefully stepped along the brick path. Moving slowly, she took in her environment. Her skirt swayed in the wind as strands of her hair blew behind her. She stopped under the shade of a tree. A gust of air suddenly caused the leaves to rustle. Tiny strands of light shone through the leaves creating golden speckles on the sidewalk.

All of a sudden, the grass looked very inviting. She crossed over to the open space and made her self comfortable. Spreading out, she lied down. It was so peaceful…no one else was here in the park this early in the morning. The warm sun shone onto her face. So warm…so peaceful…

_I really wish I didn't have to go to school… _she pleaded in her mind.

_Well… I have time…I can rest here for a while._

With that young Risa Harada closed her eyes and let the sound of the rustling leaves rock her to sleep.

----------------

She suddenly awoke to various noises. A few stray people had walked down the paths of the park talking with each other and on their cell phones. There was also the faint sound of cars rushing down the streets of the town. The sun was higher, brighter. That was when she realized it was not so early anymore.

She jerked upward. "Shoot! I'm late!"

Slightly embarrassed that she had fallen asleep in the middle of the park, she grabbed her school bag and started running towards school. She didn't make it very far until she was out of breath, and walking. She never did have very much stamina.

However, Risa walked quickly. Glancing up at the clock tower she saw that it was eight-forty five. That means that classes had started more than an hour ago.

_What am I going to say to my teachers…? Damnit! I can't just tell them I fell asleep in a park…I wonder what the people walking by were thinking of me!?_

Thinking of excuses to say to her teacher, Risa hurried towards school.

----------------

Satoshi Hiwatari's morning routine was simple. Wake up, take a shower, get dressed, grab a piece of toast, and leave. There were no parents to greet him. No mother to make him breakfast. No father casually sitting at the table drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.

He did not mind though. He liked it better being alone. No one bothered him that way.

He stepped out the door of his empty apartment, closed and locked the door, and made his way down the stairs and outside. He was always very early, so everyday he would take the long way to school through the park.

The park was peaceful, and quiet in the morning. There was no one to bump into…so this way he could avoid as much human contact as possible. The park also had beautiful scene, so every once in a while he would sit down and make a couple of sketches in his notebook. That is, if he had the time.

This particular morning, however, would not just be a casual and fast stroll in the park.

He started down the brick path. It was a beautiful day, and early enough to do some sketching. He came to the middle of the park with many trees, flowers, and benches. He sat down and briefly unzipped his school bag. Pulling out his sketch pad and setting it on his lap, he glanced around for a subject.

At that moment he saw someone lying on the grass across the way.

_What the…? Wait, could she be hurt?_

By natural instinct he stood and quickly walked over to the figure. He slowed, and as he got closer he realized that it was none other than Risa Harada.

_What in the world is she doing lying here like this? Stupid…Well She's breathing. She must be asleep…_

Satoshi found it quite odd that out of all of the places for him to find Risa Harada, it would be here.

_I should wake her…_

He stepped closer and then noticed this…almost beauty about her. She lied innocently in the grass, on her side with her hand up by her face. Her fair skin glowed with the light of the sun as the breeze blew strands of her hair around.

Satoshi's cheeks instantly became slightly warm. He ignored this.

_I won't wake her. That would mean most likely walking to school with her…_

Satoshi Hiwatari did not want nor need the company of Risa Harada. It was a burden. He wanted to walk to school in peace without a babbling girl following him.

Almost involuntarily he walked back to the bench and grabbed his sketch pad. Miraculously, he came back. Sitting down quietly next to her, he began to sketch.

He did not know what compelled him to start drawing her…

It was a simple and not detailed sketch, but beautiful all the same. He could not resist his artistic abilities telling him that this was a perfect subject.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew a couple of pieces of hair into her face. He glanced up, noticing this flaw in his subject. He could not have that…

Slowly, not to wake her, he brushed them away and tucked them behind her ear. It was bold, but she did not wake.

_She must be a pretty heavy sleeper. I wonder how long she has been here…_

Dismissing the thought, he continued. It wasn't long after that he was finished drawing the sleeping girl.

As he closed his sketch pad, she shifted.

_Oh no…is she waking up? She can't see me…that would be too much trouble. _

Quickly yet quietly, he got up and darted away. Grabbing his things off the bench, he continued down the path and out of the sight of Risa Harada.

----------------

Risa finally arrived at school. She crept down the hallway, careful to not be noticed. Everything was extremely quiet because class was in session. Finally she came to her class room.

She slowly slid the door open.

_Please no one notice…please no one notice…_

But to no avail. The room was quiet and the tiny noise of the sliding door had caught everyone's attention. They looked up from their school work. Every one of their eyes was on her.

Her cheeks grew hot. She stood there dumbly, and frozen.

The sound of her entrance had also caught her instructor's attention.

"Miss Harada? What in the world…? You're extremely late!"

"U-uhm….u-uhh…" Her voice shook. She hated being embarrassed like this in front of everyone.

"No matter, please take a seat Miss Harada. I will talk to you after class."

Risa was quite relieved that she didn't have to explain her self in front of the whole class. She quickly crossed the room to her desk. Everyone went back to their work.

_Geez…this is so embarrassing. I wonder what were working on…?_

She pulled her notebook out of her bag. Then, all of a sudden, a small crumpled up piece of paper hit her straight in the forehead. It landed and rolled off of her desk onto the floor.

She looked up, into the direction it came from, rubbing her forehead. There was Riku, in the next row over a couple of seats up. Riku stared at Risa, and motioned for her to pick it up.

Risa, quickly retrieved it off of the floor. She unfolded and smoothed it out.

**Risa, what the heck? It was worried sick about you! Where the heck were you all this time?!!! By the way, were on page 566, numbers 4-25. **

She looked back up at Riku, who had a concerned look on her face. She then scribbled a few words down on the sheet, crumpled it back up, and threw it at her.

**I'll tell you later…**

Risa hoped it would in turn, hit her in the head, but Riku caught it. She read it, looked up at Risa with a stubborn look on her face, and then returned to her work.

Risa then got settled into her desk, and started working on the problems assigned.

_Geez…I hate math…_

----------------

Satoshi had arrived to school shortly after the incident in the park. Class had started, and he noticed that she wasn't there.

_She must still be in the park…_he thought.

_I guess I should have waken her up…she must be still sleeping. _

He couldn't help but be slightly amused by this thought; the thought that she was now late because she was sleeping in the park.

_What a strange girl…but then again, she was always that way. _

----------------

An hour into class Satoshi couldn't help but think about Risa. He couldn't help but get slightly…worried? No, not worried. Just…concerned?

_Is she still sleeping? It's so late…I wonder if something happened to her. Maybe she decided to skip school? Is it possible that somebody had…kidnapped her?_

He then decided that he was giving too much thought about Risa Harada. He did not need to think about these things.

Though, he did feel a sense of relief when she showed up that morning. He was amused by her embarrassment of being extremely late.

But at the same time, relieved. He was confused by this feeling, though he quickly dismissed it.

----------------

"Well…you see…" Risa explained. "I was feeling sick this morning. But then all of a sudden, I felt better, so I decided to try to make it to school late."

"I see…but usually if you come to school late you need a note from your parent or guardian…" her instructor stated.

"Well…you see my parents are out of town…" she trailed off.

He paused, and then gave a sign of defeat.

"I will let you go this time Miss Harada," he explained while standing up and gathering up the papers on his desk. "But next time I'm going to need a phone call or a note."

"Yes, sir."

With that, Risa exited the classroom quickly. She finally was able to escape from her teacher.

_I can't believe that he bought that…I suppose my lying skills are as great as ever!_

She smiled, as she mentally praised herself.

That smile soon faded however, when she came face to face with her older sister Riku, who was waiting for her out in the hallway.

She darted over to Risa and put her hands on her shoulders. Riku shook her violently.

"So tell me, where the hell were you, huh?!!"

Risa wiggled out of her sister's grip. "Calm down, will ya?"

"Calm down, Calm down?! I will once you tell me where you were!!" Her sister gave her a look of anger and worry. Risa sighed.

"I'll tell you on the way home."

----------------

The sisters walked home together, as Risa the story of how this morning she took the long way through the park. She stupidly fell asleep, and woke up more than an hour later. She also explained what she had told her teacher, and how he had fallen for it.

"That was a pretty good lie that you made up…" Riku slowly said. "I guess you really couldn't tell him how you…" She stopped. "Risa, what the heck? You can't be so reckless! Do you know how many perverts probably walked by you? You're lucky that you weren't taken away, or kidnapped!"

Risa tensed. "I know...," she said quietly. "I won't ever do it again."

Riku continued to scold Risa until they arrived home.

----------------

Satoshi had often stayed after school in the art room. He often volunteered for cleaning duty, since he was already going there anyways. Usually, he was the only one there not including the times that Niwa would join him.

After classes had ended, he made his way down to the art room.

There was an art festival coming up that their school was holding. Everyone was busy painting and submitting their work to be in the festival.

Satoshi planned to start on his own piece of artwork, that he would submit. He entered the art room and flicked the lights on. Crossing over to one of the back rooms, he opened the door to reveal a plain white canvas. It innocently sat in the back of the room with other various art supplies. He carefully picked it up and brought it out to the main room. He then put it on a stand and pulled a chair up.

Unzipping his book bag, he pulled out various paint supplies: brushes, paint tubes, and a pallet with many dried paint colors on it already.

He sat there, looking at the canvas for a few minuets, trying to find inspiration for something to paint.

Reaching down into his book bag once again, he took out his sketch pad. Perhaps something he had sketched will give him inspiration?

He flipped through the pages with various drawings of flowers, trees, and buildings.

There it was. The sketch he had made early this morning of young Risa Harada sleeping under the tree.

_It's…perfect. _

He glanced back up at the plain white canvas, and he saw it. He saw the lines, and the colors. It was there.

_If she ever saw it…that would be troublesome…but the last place I would expect to find her would be an art show…_

He didn't think much of it. He had to paint it. Something was compelling him to, yet he didn't know what it was.

He opened various paint tubes and squeezed pastel colors onto the pallet; green, blue, brown, red, and yellow.

He then dipped his brush, and began to paint. Stroke after stroke, the picture came together. The colors were perfect…everything about it.

Later on, he was pleased with the work he had done today. It was not even close to finished, but he got the basic outline done.

Careful not to smear any of the paint, he carried it back to the back room. He leaned it faced against the wall, so no one would see it.

He cleaned, and packed up.

_I suppose I'll come and work on it…tomorrow. _

He switched off the lights and closed the door behind him.

----------------

Satoshi Hiwatari then made his way home. It was starting to get dark. The sky morphed into a beautiful sunset over the ocean. Colors of pink, orange and yellow filled the sky.

As it became darker, the street lamps flickered on. His school was not close to his apartment. It was about a 30 minute walk. He didn't mind.

_I wonder…_

_I wonder what compelled me to draw Harada-san…maybe I shouldn't submit that piece to the festival. People will recognize and see it…_

_Or maybe they won't notice? What is it about Harada-san that…_

He again decided that he was putting too much thought into Risa Harada.

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_Authors Notes: hello everyone! I've finally started a story! I'm really looking forward to this one…I'm so excited!_

_So here it is! I probably won't update until I have at least __**5 reviews**__. I don't expect many. _

_Please critique! Also, if there are any grammar mistakes, please tell me!!_

_Sorry about the short-ness. I'm going to make the next one longer! _

_COVER: http://img524(dot)imageshack(dot)us(slash)img524(slash)9246(slash)hearmeoutdl2(dot)jpg_


	2. Secrets

_Hear me out  
Chapter 2_

_Chapter One Banner:  
http:(slash)(slash)img407(dot)imageshack(dot)us(slash)img407(slash)6547(slash)chapter1ff6(dot)gif_

_Chapter Two Banner:  
http:(slash)(slash)img244(dot)imageshack(dot)us(slash)img244(slash)199(slash)chapter2rb2(dot)jpg_

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Risa Harada collapsed down onto her bed. Oh, her bed! After such a long day it was so nice to relax.

It wasn't long until Riku appeared, holding two hangers with two blouses on them. "Which one?" she questioned her sister, while holding them up.

Risa pulled herself into a sitting position. She examined both of the pieces.

"Are you going somewhere or something?"

Riku leaned against the doorway. "Niwa wants to go get something to eat."

Risa was puzzled. "It's kind of late, don't you think?"

"Not really…" she bit her lip. "I think something may be wrong…I don't know. He just really wanted us to meet somewhere."

"Well you better hurry then…you should wear the blue one" Risa said while pointing.

Her sister gave her a small smile and left the room. A couple seconds later she came in, dressed and ready to go.

"So I guess I'm going Risa…" she trailed off.

"Okay, fine." Risa said gently. With that, she heard Riku make her way downstairs and out the door.

Risa lied back down onto her bed. It wasn't but a few seconds before she was up and in her closet. She grabbed her soft pink nightgown and changed.

She then made her way over to the sliding door that led to her balcony. Unlocking and opening the door, she was hit with the smell of the ocean, and the small breeze that came from it. She closed the door behind her and stepped onto the cool concrete. It felt good on her bare feet.

She leaned over the balcony. Risa loved these little private moments she had with herself. There was nothing between her and the night sky at that moment. There were many stars out tonight, and the moon was nearly full. It's reflection off the ocean was breath taking.

Closing her eyes, she felt the cool breeze from the ocean. She heard the waves crashing against the shore. It was perfect.

Only during these times could Risa think about things…things that were troubling her, or just…things.

_It must be nice…having someone like Niwa…I'm so jealous…Why does sis have to have a boyfriend before I do? _

Looking up at the night sky, she pleaded for the stars to give her an answer.

_Well, I guess its okay. Maybe one day the right guy will find me too…I suppose I shouldn't put much thought into it. I should be happy for Riku. She never did think about 'love' or 'boys' that much. I think she deserves it. _

The smile slowly faded from her face.

_But I still can't help but be lonely…I feel like Riku is so distant now that she has Daisuke. Come to think of it, I don't really have any close friends. I always told Riku everything. Even though we are sisters, we tend to get a long really well…_

_But ever since she started going out with Daisuke, she hasn't told me anything. I mean, I am curious as to how far she's gone with him…_

_She won't even tell me anything about her life in general. She won't tell me if she's having trouble in school…or how she's annoyed with someone on the lacrosse team…she never tells me things like that. Things that she used to tell me…_

_It's not like I have anyone else to talk to either. How troublesome…It would be nice to have friends like Riku does._

_I don't really feel that much of a connection towards anyone at school though. I can't really think of anyone that I would really want to be close to…_

_Maybe that's my fault. It's almost like I put a show on for people at school. I just act really nice because, well, I want people…to like me. Maybe that's what is causing me not to have any friends? Maybe that 'stupid nice girl' attitude is what repels everyone? Maybe If I try to be myself more often, people would like me more?_

_But then again, who is that? What am I really like?_

She looked up at the stars once more.

_I shouldn't be sad. I should be happy. I mean, look at everything I have…_

"That's it. I won't think about it much anymore. I should just be…happy right?" she said out loud. She smiled.

Leaning her head against her hand, she closed her eyes. She would now take a little more time to enjoy this perfect moment.

----------------

The next day Risa woke to the obnoxious ringing of her alarm clock. She tossed her hand on top of the 'off' button, and let out a few sleepy grunts.

"Risa…Risa…!" She suddenly felt a hand shake her. Opening her sleepy eyes, it was none other than Riku.

"..h-hey…I didn't hear you come in last night…I was kind of worried."

Riku took a few steps back allowing her sister to get out of bed. "Yeah, sorry. I was out kind of late…I made us both some eggs. Come downstairs."

"Sure. I'll be there in a minute." With that Riku exited the room leaving her sister to get ready for the day.

Risa then stumbled over to the bathroom. She closed the door behind her and slipped out of her pink nightgown. She turned the shower water to 'cold' and stepped in. If anything was going to wake her up, it would be a cold shower.

_I should ask Riku about last night…_She took the shampoo bottle from the floor and squeezed a little on her hand.

_Riku doesn't know, but I stayed up until nearly midnight and she never came home…it's too bad we don't have cell phones. We could really keep in touch better that way…_

_What happened last night with Niwa…? Well, she's my sister. I'll just ask her about it. _

Risa finished washing her hair and stepped out. She wasn't fond of blow drying her hair. Having it dry naturally was something that she always did. Taking her white robe from behind the door, she put it on and made her way downstairs.

Entering the kitchen, she saw Riku at the stove preparing some bacon for the both of them. Risa sat down quietly.

Riku took her sisters plate of eggs out of the microwave and handed them to her. "I hope they aren't too cold." She said.

Risa gratefully took the eggs and began to eat.

Silence.

_Should I ask her…? _Risa thought. Then a few moments later…

"So…Riku…" She started.

Riku turned to her sister and leaned against the counter. "What is it?"

"Well…what happened with Niwa last night? What time did you get home?"

Riku turned, and continued to turn the bacon. "Well…I got home around eleven…you were sleeping so I didn't want to wake you. Daisuke and I just walked around in the park, and we got something to eat. We lost track of time. It was nothing."

_That's a lie! Riku knows I always go to bed early, but not last night! I stayed up until twelve waiting for her! There is no way she could have gotten home at just eleven. She's lying. Why is she lying to me? What really happened?!_

"Oh…okay then. Well, I'm finished. I'm going to go get ready."

Riku turned with spatula in hand. "Don't you want some bacon?"

"I'm fine. Just save it." Risa said while exiting quickly.

It wasn't before long that Risa was upstairs getting dressed. She combed her semi-wet hair.

_Why…? _She wondered. _Why did she lie to me? What is she keeping from me?_

Risa was troubled. This has never happened before. Her sister had never lied to her- that she knew of, at least.

A voice called from downstairs. "I'm leaving early Risa! Get to school on time today, will ya?" With that came the sound of the front door closing.

----------------

Risa left early again that morning. She also made sure that she made it to school on time, or perhaps a little early.

She arrived and entered the classroom that was buzzing with excitement, or more like morning chatter. It was Friday, and even though it was early everyone was excited for the weekend.

Crossing the room, she sat in her desk by the window, as usual. She didn't really feel like talking to anyone at the moment, because of what was troubling her. The whole thing with Riku was weighing on her mind more than she thought…

Not surprisingly, the person who was causing her so much trouble came over. "Glad to see that you made it here on time." She said casually.

"I guess so…"

Risa was at a loss for words. She didn't feel comfortable talking to her sister right now. Why was Riku acting like this?

Luckily, the bell rang and class started. Riku immediately jumped into her seat before their instructor caught her.

He walked in a few seconds after, coffee cup in hand, bag over his shoulder and many papers and file folders in his arms.

"Good morning class" He greeted, keeping his eyes on his desk. He set his papers, coffee, and bag down and took his place at the center of the room.

"Since it's been a while, today I decided it would be a good idea to change the seating arrangement."

Some stray moans and groans erupted from the classroom. Apparently, people liked the current seating arrangement. Risa, however, paid no attention to it. She was too busy day dreaming.

"Well then, here is the seating chart. I will call out your names and point to the desk you will now be sitting in."

With that came the noise of zippers, notebooks, and books closing. Because of the abrupt noise, Risa finally caught on to what was happening.

_Darn…I wont get to sit by the window anymore…_Was her only thought.

She gathered her already packed things and waited for her new seat to be called. The teacher snaked his way around the room calling names, as each student sat in their assigned seat.

----------------

_Were changing seats…_Satoshi Hiwatari observed. _I hope I don't have to sit by someone…loud. _

He was standing in the front of the room by the window. It wasn't long before Risa Harada came and stood by him. He observed her.

She looked a little dazed. Maybe day dreaming?

_She's usually not like this…I wonder…_

As awkward as it was, Risa Harada and Satoshi Hiwatari were left standing idly at the front room. Every seat was filled except for the two in the back at the corner of the room.

"You two will fill those seats over there. Harada-san will sit at the one to the left, and Hiwatari-san at the one on the right."

…_oh no._

Satoshi did not expect this. He did not expect this at all.

_Hopefully she won't be…too loud…_

He sighed. _This is going to be a long semester… _He thought as he took his seat.

----------------

_Yes! This is great! I can't believe I'm sitting next to Hiwatari! _She thought happily. _He's really smart…I can ask him to explain things to me! Excellent…_She thought deviously.

But her enthusiasm was gone as fast as it came. Her problems came back to her, and she carefully drifted off into a day dream.

_And I still get to sit by the window, too…_

----------------

_I think…is she…?_

Satoshi had never payed much attention in class. After all, he had already graduated from college. Why did he need to pay attention? He knew this material. He knew exactly what the teacher was talking about. Because of this, he often read or drew in class.

Because of his lack of attention, he couldn't help but notice Risa Harada slowly drifting off to sleep.

_She is. She's sleeping. But I thought she was doing terrible in this class. She should be paying attention. Should I wake her up? No. It's her problem. If she sleeps during class, it has nothing to do with me. _

He faced the front of the classroom and tried to focus on something else. It wasn't long until his eyes drifted off, again, to the sleeping girl.

_She must be tired. Risa rarely falls asleep like this. She usually tries to pay attention, even though she does terrible. She really wants to learn, but somehow I don't think it ever gets across to her…_

_She must have stayed up late last night. That would explain her sleeping in class…_

His eyes widened. He was staring.

He immediately directed his attention back to the current novel he was reading.

----------------

She awoke to the sound of the bell. Everyone moved at once, packing their things and getting ready to leave, since it was the last class of the day.

She immediately straightened, and looked around frantically. Everyone was leaving. Why? Class had just started, hadn't it?

Her eyes widened at the realization of it. She had just slept through the whole class.

"Oh no, oh no…this can't happen." She panicked. Looking around, she noticed the blue haired boy packing up his things.

"Hiwatari-kun!" She slammed her hands down on his desk. "Please, I fell asleep, I didn't mean to! What did we learn today? Please tell me! I'm failing this class! If I don't pay attention, I'll only…fail more!!"

Satoshi was startled by the girl's outburst. He stood. "We have a small quiz tomorrow on the lesson we learned today." He said quietly.

"WHAT?!!" she was now on the verge of tears. "Oh no, oh no!! This cant be happening!!"

She turned to him once more. "Please Hiwatari, I'm begging you! You have to help me!"

She desperately clung to his arm. Satoshi, surprised by such close contact, stepped back a little. He stared at her. He didn't know what to do, or say.

"…I-I'm sorry Harada-san. I have things that I need to attend to." It was true. He needed to work on the painting that he was planning on submitting to the art festival. His secret masterpiece not known to his subject…

Her eyes became blank. Realizing what she was doing, she jumped back. "I-I'm so sorry!" She blushed madly. She covered her chest with her arms. She was so embarrassed.

_He must think I'm such a freak for grabbing onto him like that! Oh geez, I'm so embarrassed…how could this day get any worse?!_

"I…I-I have to be going. I'm sorry to have troubled you."

Before she could turn and leave, Satoshi quickly answered. "It's quite alright Harada-san. If you really want…" he drifted off.

Her face lit up. "Are you…really going to help me?!" The brightest smile came to her face. A smile so big, that Satoshi didn't know how it was possible. "I suppose it would be alright…we can walk down to the library…"

Her eyes again widened. "Thank you so much for devoting your time to me!" She bowed. "I will not let you down!"

_What a strange girl…_

Emotionless, he nodded. "We should get going then." He stated as his bent down and retrieved his school bag.

"Right!" she chirped.

She followed him closely out of the classroom with a big smile on her face; almost like how a baby duckling would follow its mother.

_What a strange girl…_

----------------

Risa did not say one word until they got to the library. She just simply smiled, as she walked behind Hiwatari- not to be in the way. He noticed this.

_Well, I suppose this wont be as troublesome as I thought it would. I'll just go over some things with her and then we'll leave. She seems to be pretty quiet…This won't be as troublesome as I thought…_

They both entered the library. Risa had been so quiet that Satoshi had to glance over his shoulder to make sure she was still following him. But of course, she was.

They made their way up the stairs to the second floor of the library. This is where most of the study rooms and tables were.

He slowly stopped, and glanced over his shoulder once again. She was walking while staring at the ground. Her eyes were blank.

Due to her lack of attention, she bumped right into him. She immediately snapped out of her dazed state and jumped back.

"Oh no! I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention and I- well I was just- I wasn't-"

"It's alright." He said to her. "Where would you like to sit?"

Her blush faded. "Uhm…over there is fine." She said pointing to some of the tables at the corner of the library.

Satoshi gave a nod of approval and continued walking in the direction she had pointed. She followed, this time paying full attention to where she was walking. An incident like that would not happen again.

They arrived at a table by the window, and sat down; Satoshi on one side and Risa on the other. "You will need to open your book to chapter eleven" Satoshi stated while unpacking his things.

"Right!" She leaned and dug around in her schoolbag for her book. She was looking for quite a long time until she straightened. "I…I must have forgotten it at school." She said embarrassed, and rubbing the back of her head.

He gave a light sigh.

"It's alright…here." He said holding his own text book out to her.

She smiled, and took it, flipping through the pages.

----------------

_I'm so lucky to have Hiwatari-kun teaching me all of this…_she thought as she found chapter eleven in his book. _With his help, I'll be able to ace that quiz tomorrow! _

"Okay! I'm ready." She chirped.

He nodded. "In this chapter, you will be learning out to factor equations. Basically, you will be finding two possible solutions for X." He explained.

_Wow…he's so calm and cool…he really does know exactly what he's talking about. _She kept glancing from him to the textbook, and back at him.

"Wait, wait, wait." She interrupted. He paused.

"What do you mean by…solving for X?" She quietly asked.

He stared at her. _Well, no wonder she's failing this class…_

"In Algebra, you goal is to solve for the variable in the equation." He said plainly.

"The variable…?" She felt her self getting smaller, and smaller. She didn't know anything about Algebra.

"The variable can be any letter, but in most problems it is usually X. The purpose of the equation is to solve for X, and in Algebra there are many ways you may go about doing that."

"I see, I see." She said nodding and staring right at him, absorbing everything he was saying.

"Factoring is one way you can solve for X. However, factoring will only work if the problem is set up in this form." He reached across the table, pointing to an equation in the book.

"I see…" she said, and waited for him to continue.

"When factoring, you are almost simplifying the equation. This way, you will be able to find an answer for X. Now, the process for doing that…" he reached across the table turning to the next page for her. He pointed to a row of practice problems.

"For example, this problem…" He slid his notebook over to her, and demonstrated the problem. "Foiling is a technique used in algebra to simplify the problem into what you already have here. This form is the result of foiling."

"Yes…I remember foiling. I get what you're saying."

He nodded. "Good. Now factoring is basically changing the problem into something that you would foil. That would be the two sets of parenthesis, with one variable and one positive or negative number."

"So…this X squared would become to two parentheses…I mean one would have one X and…" He could tell she wasn't good at explaining these sorts of things.

"Yes, what you have written is correct. Now you have to look at these two numbers. You see, you need to find out what is multiplied to get the last number, and those numbers must add up to this one." He said pointing.

"I understand!" She started writing. "…Like this?"

"Yes, very good" He gave yet another nod of approval.

It wasn't long until she had it. She did each of the practice problems perfectly.

"Remember, if the middle number is negative and the number at the end is positive, it means both of the numbers in the parentheses must be negative. You see?"

"Oh, I see. I got it." She continued silently on the problems.

_She really is a smart girl. She has much potential. However, the only way for her to truly understand something such as this is one-on-one with someone. That was she has the ability to comfortably ask questions…I suppose she couldn't just ask "What is a variable?" in class. Everyone would probably laugh at her…It's unfortunate._

"So lately, I've been really suspicious" she said interrupting his thoughts.

He looked up at her. This obviously had nothing to do with Algebra.

"Riku has been keeping secrets from me lately. I know it! Last night she went out with Niwa, and she didn't come home until really late! I stayed up all night worrying about her, but I feel asleep at midnight. She still wasn't home by then!" She let out a small 'hmph' as she continued to work on her practice problems.

He was staring at her. _Why is she telling me this…?_

"Harada-san…this has nothing to do with-"

"I can't believe the nerve of her! This morning I woke up and asked Riku where she had been, and she was totally lying! She even said she had gotten home by eleven, but she didn't know I was up waiting for her!!"

She was so frustrated, that the tip broke off of her pencil. "Damn…" She said quietly.

"H-here…" Satoshi said, holding out his own sharpener to her.

"Oh, Thanks!" She was back and working again.

But it wasn't long until she started up again. "Were sisters for crying out loud! I mean we always got along really well…and we always told each other everything! What could Riku be hiding…?"

She kept working. Satoshi was quite impressed by her ability to concentrate on her math and talk about something completely different at the same time.

_Why is she telling me this…? She probably doesn't even realize what she's doing._

"Well…she is a teenager. This is the age that people feel the need to be incredibly secretive." Satoshi said slowly.

Surprised by his input, she looked up at him. "You really think so?"

"Well, yes." He said calmly while slipping the notebook from her grip to check her problems.

"It's not surprising. You two are sisters…and you two are older now. Maybe she just doesn't feel obligated to tell you everything that is going on in her life. Well, not anymore at least…" He scribbled something with his red pen onto one of the problems.

Almost ashamed, she looked down. "I can't believe it…" she drifted.

"Though the common teenager feels the need to be secretive at times, that does not however, give her the right to lie about things." He slid the notebook over to her.

"I guess your right…what should I do…?" she wondered while looking over the couple of problems that were marked wrong.

"I suppose the most sensible thing to do would just be…to talk to her about it." He leaned his arms against the table.

"Yes, but what is she just denies it?" she plucked her pencil off the table and corrected her problems.

"Well, I suppose there is nothing you can do about it then. I guess you can always try to talk to Niwa about it…"

"Yeah, that would make a good 'plan B'" she said nodding. "This is all that's going to be on the quiz tomorrow?"

"Yes…I suppose that's all for today." He said while closing his notebooks and packing up.

"Oh, right. I guess we have been here for a while. I'm sorry for the trouble…" she slung her bag over her shoulder.

He shook his head. "It was nothing."

They pushed in their chairs. Risa followed Satoshi out of the library. They emerged from the doors, and the orange sky was revealed to them. It started getting dark earlier these days. It was almost winter.

Risa turned to Satoshi. "Thank you, Hiwatari-kun." She bowed. "I really appreciate this."

"It was nothing. I will see you tomorrow." With that he turned and headed back towards school.

He had gotten ten feet before glancing behind him. Risa still stood in front of the library. She was looking at the sky's pastel colors. He stopped.

_She really has this sadness about her…_

She quickly noticed he had stopped. She turned toward him and put on a big smile. She waved goodbye, and started in the direction of her home."

He nodded to her and kept walking, as they went their separate ways.

_She is lonely…_

----------------

Slowly, she made her way home. She was mesmerized by the colors of the sky. Again, she took the long way through the park that was painted with oranges and yellows. The scenery was just gorgeous.

_I wonder why Hiwatari-kun decided to help me like that…He's a lot nicer of a guy than I thought he was. He isn't that bad at all. A lot of girls like him, but he's always so cold to them. Or at least that's what they say about him…but he really isn't like that. He has a warm feeling to him. It's really…nice._

Paying attention to her steps, she made her way slowly home. _I hope that Riku isn't worried…I should have told her where I was going._

_Come to think of it, where did she go so suddenly after school? We usually walk home together. Did she have lacrosse practice? No, today was Wednesday. I wonder if she went somewhere after school…_

_Well, I guess I will find out once I get home. _

She continued quicker to her house, considering it was getting darker and darker by the second. She was also curious to see what Riku was up to.

_Oh yeah! I should talk to Riku when I get back, like Hiwatari-kun said. Then we can get this whole thing straightened out. _

She nodded with determination.

In no time, she was at her front gate. She walked down the black pavement and onto the porch. She stopped at the front door, digging around in her bag to find her house keys. The compartment that she always put her house keys in only held a couple of pencils and an eraser. She felt around, but she could not feel the familiar rough edges of her metal keys.

They were gone.

In a panic, she emptied her whole bag onto the porch: pencils, books, a mirror, and a comb…no house key.

_Okay…its okay…Riku must be home. _She pushed the doorbell a couple of times. After a few seconds she looked into the side window. The house was completely dark. She then tried the door, which was obviously locked. She stepped back.

_Riku isn't at home. _She thought. _She isn't here. The doors are locked. I don't have a key._

She processed the situation. She was sure the windows were locked, and there wasn't exactly a back door that she could just waltz into. There was also no key under the flowerpot, or doormat either. She was locked out of her own house.

Glancing around for any clue as in how to get into her house, she found no sign of Riku. This also worried her. It was getting darker, and darker. The streetlamp at the end of the Harada's driveway flickered on.

Risa took a deep breath. She retrieved all of her things that were dumped onto her porch. Closing her bag, she walked.

She stepped off her porch, made her way down the driveway, and onto the street.

_Where am I going? I'm locked out. I can't believe this. Mother and Father are still on business…I'm all alone. What am I going to do? _

The night brought cold air. The sky was completely dark now. There were few streetlights that lit the side streets of her town.

It was scary for Risa to walk alone like that. The strangest feeling had possessed her: the feeling of worry for Riku, and being alone in the dark. She let her feet carry her all the way to the park.

The wind started to pick up. She shivered, as she wrapped her arms around herself. She didn't have a coat, and she was still in her school uniform which consisted of a short sleeve blouse and a short skirt.

The park was much lighter than the side streets of her town. She felt a little more secure, although the park was quite deserted.

She came to a bench. Her legs were very tired from all of the walking she had done. She sat down on the cold metal, which froze her legs.

Setting her bag down, she brought her knees up to her chest.

She sniffed as stray tears started to fall down her face. Risa had always been somewhat of a crybaby, but crying was her way to let her stress out.

_Today was such a hard day. How can this possible get any worse? It's…It's so cold…_

Wind howled in her ears causing her to shiver. She brought her hands up and covered her ears to keep them warm.

Alone. Tired. Hungry. Risa Harada would now be stranded at the cold park, for what would seem to be hours.

----------------

Satoshi had left Risa, and made his way back to the school. He was now going to continue painting, which was his original intention until he had to take Risa Harada to the library to teacher her how to factor an equation.

_I suppose it wasn't that troublesome…_

He entered the school, whose halls were empty due to the time. He quietly walked, unnoticed, to the art room. He typed in the special code, and the door opened.

Pulling the door open, her stepped inside and flicked the lights to the 'on' position. Everything was always relatively the same in the art room.

Almost retracing his steps from the day before, he made his way to the back room where his 'soon to be' masterpiece lied. He was relieved when he had found that no one had touched it.

He brought the canvas out and set it on the easel. He did exactly as he did yesterday, pulling out his paints and squeezing them on the pallet.

Once again, he continued to paint. The general outline was already complete, so he started to fill in one side of the painting with its general color.

He made large strokes across one side of the canvas, where the tree trunk would be. Shades of green were spread across where the grass was.

He painted the general colors, and then began to add shades of different color.

Satoshi would tell you he really liked to paint. It wasn't because he was good at, or because he was a Hikari either. Even if he was terrible at painting, he would still love it.

The feeling of the brush against the canvas painting what ever you want. The freedom of painting is what he really loved.

Stroke by stroke, the painting came more into view. It was coming together. He didn't particularly take much time on the painting today. It was probably about twenty minuets until he packed up and left. He would have spent more time on it today if it wasn't for Risa Harada. However, he didn't mind.

He exited the art room, leaving it the same as when he had come in. He quietly made his way out of school.

It was dark, as night fell around him. It had gotten much colder outside, but he was mostly immune to it. He didn't mind walking home in the dark, mostly because that was usually when he ended up going home.

Like always, he took the way through the park, since it was the shortest way. His steps were brief, as he trudged through the park.

_I should probably pick up something to eat on the way home…I don't remember having many groceries back at home. _

These were the kinds of consequences of living by himself. He had to do his own shopping, and take complete care of himself. He didn't have any help from anyone, but he liked that. He favored doing things in his own way. He didn't mind. It was how he grew up, after all.

The park entrance was not an inviting one. The park was dimly lit, and it looked rather cold and…almost haunted. He was not afraid however, because he knew the park like the back of his hand, considering he had taken this way home every day this year.

He walked faster, and thought about what he was going to get at the grocery store. He made his way down the brick path. He looked up briefly.

There was someone on the bench. A girl. A very familiar looking girl.

She looked lost, sad, confused…sitting alone on the bench, like a lost child. She shook from the cold air around her. Her shoulders heaved. She was crying.

Her legs were drawn to her chest and her hands over her ears. She drew her self closer, for warmth.

Stopping, he stared at her. "Harada-san…"

Immediately pulling off his jacket, he ran over to her. "Harada-san"

Due to her hands over her ears, and her crying, she didn't hear him.

He touched her shoulder lightly. "Harada-san…"

Alarmed, her head shot up. Her face was tear-stained, and her eyes were red. She moved her mouth, like she was going to say something, but no words came out. Only more tears.

He kneeled down, putting his coat around her. "Why are you out here, Harada-san? What are you doing here? Why aren't you at home? Did something happen?" His face was hard with concern.

Continuing to stare, she moved her mouth again. Tears were the only thing that continued to come out of her. She couldn't speak. She buried her face in her hands.

Kneeling silently, he continued to think.

He put his hands on Risa's shoulders. "Listen to me, Risa. I'm…I'm going to take you home now, alright?"

She shook her head, and then sneezed. She had been out in the cold too long.

Standing up, he clasped her wrist, and pulled her gently up. With his other hand, he took her schoolbag and slung it over his shoulder. He let go and took a few steps, coaxing her to follow. She took a few steps, but stumbled. She was too disoriented and upset to walk.

He caught her, and pulled her back up. He had no choice but to carry her.

"Harada-san, I have to carry you." He told her, so she wouldn't be startled when he put one of his arms around her leg, and scooped her up into his arms.

She was lightweight, and easy to carry. He started down the pathway to the home of Risa Harada. He felt her tiny hand grasp his shirt. The words that came out of her were so quiet, he could barely hear them. "I'm…sorry…"

With no response, he continued walking. He carried her up the path, and down the side streets to her house. With his fast paced walking, it only took them about twenty minuets.

They arrived at the gate of the Harada Estate. He pushed it open with his back and slowly walked up the driveway. The house was dark. He stepped onto the porch and rang the doorbell. No one was home.

_So this is what happened. She was locked out of her house…Did she lose her keys? She must have. _

He glanced around for a way in. He thought, but he had no choice but to put his great lock picking skills into action.

With Risa still in his arms, he managed to dig a paperclip from his bag. Straightening it out, he picked at the lock. With a small 'click' the door was open.

He again pushed the door open with his back. It was completely dark within the house, and he too wondered what had happened to Riku.

He had also never been in the Harada house before. He almost felt as if he was intruding. Risa had fallen asleep, so he had to get her in her bed safely.

Guessing her bedroom was upstairs, the carried her up each stair. He peeked inside of each room, until he found hers. It was obvious, because it was pink.

He carried the sleeping girl into the dark room and set her on the bed. Feeling extremely awkward, he pulled the covers over her. She settled into her bed.

Closing and locking the doors behind him, he left the house. His job was done: he had gotten Risa Harada home safely.

He reviewed everything that had just happened. This had been a very long day, and he was glad to go home.

Then the reminder of having to go to the grocery store had come back to him. He sighed. "Damn…" he rubbed his shoulders. He had forgotten to take his coat back.

----------------

Phew! I just spent the last four hours writing. This chapter is a tad bit overdue, only because I wanted to make it longer. It's twice as long as chapter one, so I hope you all enjoy!

I don't really know if all of the math stuff was accurate from the library scene. Hopefully it is. But…whatever. :P

Since I wrote most of this just now, there are probably spelling errors that I didn't catch while editing. Also, if there are things that sound funny or anything, let me know! I will edit and change it immediately!

Thanks for the reviews everyone!!

_(RisaSatoshiForever, SaFireLupe, crimsonseeker20, utopia, aline, and Soul of AquaBlue!)_

_Utopia: Thanks for telling me about the error in chapter one! It should be fixed now. :X_

_SaFireLupe / Aline: I made the cover! I'm glad you liked it!_


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